Whisper My Reflection

Thy Beloved Fur Ball

"-And she is absolutely adorable Sakura! You have to come round and see, her fur is so soft and shiny…"

Sakura was half listening to Ino on the phone; she'd had it squished between her ear and shoulder for over half an hour, Ino was not one for short conversations. It was not a very comfortable position to be in whilst shaving your legs, repeatedly scratching yourself.

"Hmmm, she sounds lovely." Sakura lightly mused, once again grabbing a round pad and dabbing the little cut on her leg.

Just yesterday, Ino had found a stray cat, a story which Sakura refuses to believe. In Sakura's opinion, Ino saw the cat, stalked the cat, lunged for the cat and claimed the poor animal. It was not a far off accusation to make when concerning one such as Ino.

"You have got to come over right now! She doesn't really respond well, so be careful. Okay, it's decided! Oh, and buy cat food on your way here. I already spent my money when I got back from the mission. I got a new pair of shoes, they are so smexy!"

Sakura sighed and agreed to come over, reminding Ino that she owed her before she pressed the end button to end the call. Well, she had nothing better to do. Naruto was hogging Hinata to himself and Sai…uh; he wasn't really the type of person to hang out with.

Dropping her towel to pool around her feet, she pulled on her underwear. Wearing a baggy jumper and shorts to show off her smooth legs, she pulled her hair into a loose pony tail. The tips brushing the back of her neck.

'I need to get it cut again.' She muttered in her mind. No matter how short Sakura had her hair cut, it always seemed to grow twice as fast as normal hair. Naruto had offered the idea to shave it off, Sakura took it as an insult and severely pummelled him for it. After all, at 19, Sakura was still self-conscious of how she looked. Though the need to always check herself in every reflection had dimmed down since her team mate had left. She wondered when she had started to say that so casually. Lately, when she and Naruto talked about their genin years, and Sasuke's name just pops into the conversation, it wasn't awkward. It was down right funny to hear Naruto call him a bastard every now and then, she laughed because she agreed. There might be a slight hurting in her heart when she hears of his 'accomplishments' that he had done for the Akatsuki, but nothing compared to when he had left. Nothing so bad that she cried herself to sleep at night like all those years ago...nothing could ever be like that...

Finally arriving at her best friend's doorstep and saying hello to Ino's elderly neighbour, she stepped inside the cosy house.

"Ino, the store didn't have any cat food so I just left it." Sakura called throughout the house, even though it was lie. Sakura was tight with money and wouldn't spend it on some stray (stolen) cat.

Ino bounded down the stairs and stopped half way, "Did you really go to the store?" She asked pointedly, not bothering to hide her doubtful expression.

"Of course I did," Sakura replied, looking offended, "Why would I not go out of my way and spend money for my friend's stol-stray cat?"

Ino shook her head but quickly recovered, "Never mind, I'll reprimand you later." At this, Sakura raised a mocking eyebrow.

"Well, come on! She is so cute and fluffy and-"

"-And shiny. You told me on the phone."

"Oh yeah, so I did. But anyway, you will die when you see her!"

Sakura smiled and ascended the stairs, following after a hyper Ino. When she emerged into Ino's room, once again she was blinded by the amount of purple and pinks there were. Ino has a purple fetish, it is very contagious and Sakura is still struggling to cure Ino of it. Sakura tried to introduce Ino to the green side of things, maybe a nice pale yellow or something like that. But Ino looked scandalised that Sakura would ever think another colour is more beautiful than purple.

"I'm giving her a quick bath right now because she was so dirty." Ino called from her attached bathroom. Sakura nodded but then froze, 'I thought cat's hated water?' It turned out she was right when a loud meow shrieked in the bathroom followed by a low, threatening hiss. Sakura ran to the bathroom and stopped short at the door. A black ball was sliding down the side of the bath tub, and then it jumped and made another leap only to slide back down again. Sakura was stifling back a chuckle at the little fur ball till she saw Ino grab her hair shampoo. Panic rose in Sakura's mind and she lunged toward the bath tub. She quickly grabbed the cat around its stomach and held it to her chest.

"What the hell do think you're doing?" Sakura demanded at a confused Ino.

Sakura was briefly aware of the feline stiffen in her arms, but it made no move to scratch her. For that, Sakura was thankful. This was her favourite jumper.

"I was just washing it, is that such a crime?" Ino shot back.

Sakura let out a frustrated sigh and grabbed a hand towel hanging on the door knob. "Cats hate water, Ino. And you shouldn't use your own shampoo on them, it could damage their fur." Sakura stated walking to the bed and sitting down, the cat in her lap. She held it against her stomach and dried its fur, careful not to be too rough.

Ino humph-ed and crossed her arms, "It has nine lives doesn't it." Ino stated.

Sakura shook her head sorrowfully at the woman, she could truly be a handful. Shikamaru must have the patience of a saint to put up with her never mind wanting to marry her. Oh yes, the 'troublesome' man was serious about his girlfriend. Sakura was sure to get him to agree to the girls' hen night idea, it involved nightclub, men and a whole lot of alcohol.

Ino eyed Sakura hotly as if trying to bore a hole through the pinkette's head, but Sakura paid no mind to the blonde. The cat was warm against her palm, she could feel its little heart beating steadily. Even after going through an ordeal involving Ino and water, she was surprised the cat was still alive-

Sakura stiffened as the cat hissed, "Ino, the cat's not a 'she'."

Ino's eyes widened a fraction before she scoffed, "Well, he seems fine with you. I've got scratches all over my arms and legs, they hurt." Ino pouted like a baby as she whined.

Once deeming the cat to be partially dry, she set him on Ino's bed beside her and stood up.

"I know what that tone is, Ino, and the answer is no." Sakura said as a matter-of-factly.

"Come on, Sakura! He seems perfectly fine with you, it's just a little company in your lonesome world."

Sakura raise her eyebrows, she was perfectly content with her small apartment. She was friendly with all of her neighbours and Team 7 usually came round to hang out. If you call, Naruto raiding your fridge, Sai spying on the neighbours and Kakashi reading and chuckling to himself in the corner, hanging out.

The cat gazed side-ways at her from its place on the bed, it really did look out of place in Ino's room. It sat with its head down and its eyes never wavering from her, the orbs black as ebony. It looked relaxed yet poised to attack at any given moment, it reminded her of a certain person.

"Sorry Ino, I really can't. Besides, I heard that Hinata's younger sister likes cats. You'd be in Neji's good books."

Sakura knew that Ino loved Shikamaru, but she was still a perv at heart.

Ino's eyes shone and she smiled evilly and she turned to the cat. Sakura saw the cat tense but she was out of the bedroom to avoid such a nasty scene. She was pulling her shoes on when Ino screamed upstairs and a loud thump followed shortly after. Sakura turned around and saw the cat skidding at the top of the stairs then bouncing down them with agility that only a cat would have. The animal stopped at the foot of the stairs and raised its head to stare at Sakura. Several minutes passed before Sakura felt uncomfortable at the intense gaze of the ebony orbs. She'd been through plenty of staring contests with Sai so she knew how to hold her own, but Sai's bleak eyes didn't intimidate her like this. Sakura narrowed her eyes and turned on her heel to open the door.

"No." She said sternly, stepping out the door.

::XxX::

"Yes Naruto-no Naruto, I didn't take the cat. Yes, I know Hanabi wants one that's why I-it's a boy. I don't know what it's called-No, I don't have any ramen!"

Sakura ended the conversation immediately, cutting off Naruto's cries for her to talk to him. It wasn't her fault if Hinata's father decided to be evil and steal her phone.

Sakura was perched on her kitchen counter with tea in her hands. She scanned her living room/kitchen, deciding she needed to clean up all of the documents sprawled carelessly on the floor. This was not a home for a cat, all her precious work would be in shreds if she left the animal alone for even a second. Much like Naruto. Her week off was not going how she planned it, it was supposed to be fun and spontaneous. However, Tsunade just happened to have unfinished reports that are to be sent away as soon as possible. They were dated last year.

Sighing, she flipped her light switch and was plunged into darkness so she could imagine a tidy apartment. She poured the rest of her tea the sink and let her feet take her to her bedroom. Her room was simple, a double bed at the centre of the far wall, a dressing table, wardrobe and an attached bathroom. Changing into her pyjamas and letting her hair loose, she flopped onto her bed face first and didn't bother to pull the covers over her body. It had been a long day, going to Ino's, getting intimidated by a cat whose life she saved, went shopping avoiding Ino, having the feeling something was glaring at her…

Sakura's head jerked up, her hair falling into her face. She blew it away impatiently and sat up to confront a small shadow at her window. She sat and stared at the shadowed form outside her window, she blinked once, twice, and then glared.

It was that stupid cat again! Its eyes shone with a gleam caused by the street lamps below. Sakura didn't bother to bottle up her feelings and imagine a box to put them in, she muttered curses at the cat even though it was on the other side of the window. But she saw its ears twitch and instantly shut up. Coming to a conclusion that cats did not stalk humans, she gave the animal one last glare and turned to lie back down on her pillow. She refused to raise her head even when the shadow of the cat disappeared.

There were few entrances into Sakura's apartment. She was on the middle floor of a three-story complex. There were other apartments on either side of hers and a balcony running along the length of the complex about five feet in front of her door. There was a window in the kitchen part, 2 windows beside her front door for the living room, one in her bedroom and a small one for her bathroom. But a cat surely wasn't smart enough to figure the system out, right? After all, it was just a cat.

Sakura didn't lift her head even when she heard the lightest scratches against glass, nor when she heard soft, slow padding against her wooden floor. Not even when she once again felt eyes on her, and then, the little bastard hopped onto her bed.

"Nope, no way. Get off and get out!" Sakura ordered with a finger pointing to her bedroom door.

But the arrogant cat looked at her then lay down at the foot of her bed. Sakura was having none of it.

Ignoring the meowing and hissing, Sakura made her way to the front door with the cat in her hand. It was raining but Sakura didn't care, that cat had stalked her and then waltzed into her home as if the thing belonged there. It most certainly did not as Sakura yanked open the door and literally threw the cat onto the balcony. It began to run back to her but she shut the door and heard a light thud where the cat ran into it. What was it hoping to do, break the door down? Sakura ignored the cat's attempts to budge the door and went back to bed.

Her face hit the pillow and she drowned out the noises around her, the droplets of water falling from the tap in the kitchen sink, the boiler humming, a dog's muffled bark somewhere in the neighbourhood and then the cat. Didn't it ever give up?

Soon, she let sleep consume her. Happily welcoming the bliss silence it offered.

::XxX::

Sakura awoke with a start to the sound of a phone ringing. Always not a morning person, she cursed the infuriating talking device to hell. She leaped from the bed and narrowly missed knocking her foot off the couch as she grabbed the phone furiously.

"Sakura! The demon cat disappeared yesterday! I promised Neji I had a cat for Hanabi and he wants it today!" Ino wailed into the phone.

Neji would not like being forced to go cat hunting. No wonder Ino was scared; Neji's temper could rival her own-

Sakura stopped her pacing, her eyes transfixed on her front door, or so to say, the gaping hole at the bottom of her front door. The phone dropped from Sakura's hand and Ino's voice was abruptly cut off. Bits of wood splattered her floor in front of the medium sized hole. There was silence throughout Sakura's home, she moved slowly to the kitchen and grabbed her cooking pan on reflex. She started for her room in silent fury, knowing she couldn't fool the cats hearing, she didn't bother to muffle her footsteps. She made her presence known and expanded her chakra signature to fill the entire house. Surely, the cat would know who was dominating who. It'd freak out and scurry back into an alley or something, like animals usually do when in a threatening habitat. And Sakura was very threatening, how dare that cat come in here and break her door down. What kind of cat breaks a door down? When she finds the little brat she's taking him straight to the vet for a check-up. She can't give a mutant cat to Hanabi.

The black fur ball was seated on her window ledge. How she didn't notice when she woke up astounded her. The cat's head bowed low and its eyes flickered to the pan she was gripping tightly, a shadowed expression crossed its face as if it was daring her to do it. Oh, she did not turn down a dare! Smirking, she charged for the cat in the intent to knock it out with the pan. But the cursed thing leapt from the window onto her bed where Sakura threw the pan in her haste to protect her beloved bed. The cat dodged and ran, almost as if mocking her.

"Listen you little mutated kitty," She panted, "You are going to Hanabí's whether you like it or not!"

The cat sat on the arm of her couch and gazed intently at her. She stared right back, pushing strands of hair out of her face. The cat watched every move she made, wary if her actions would lead to more lunging and running. Sakura peeked at her documents on the floor, the cat followed her gaze. She looked back and forth between the cat and the documents and saw, as if a reflection hovering over the cat, that he was smirking.

"Don't you dare."

The cat leaped into the pile of documents before Sakura could grab it, instant worry took over Sakura. Her precious documents were about to be shredded by a cat.

"Okay, okay," Sakura said quickly, holding her hands out as if willing it to stop, "Hanabi is very nice, she will take care of you-No! Do not rip that!"

Sakura had run out of ideas, she had a few but it would mean sacrificing her medical documents. This cat was smart, she'd give it that but it was infuriating. Sakura straightened and hunched her shoulders, the cat didn't move. This was ridiculous, she was trying to negotiate with a cat.

"Fine," She said grudgingly. It was all it took for the cat to nod and stroll off into her kitchen, not a mark on her documents.

She wasn't keeping the cat, no way in hell. So she phoned a not to happy Neji, telling him she had the mutated demon cat in her house, careful to keep her voice low. You never know what cats can understand, she wasn't taking chances. It was seated on her counter where she usually sits, watching her as she poured cereal.

Sakura ignored the cat until her doorbell rang, the cats head turned promptly to the door. Sakura smiled sweetly at it and skipped to the door, knowing who it was and how far he'd go to make his little cousin happy.

"Hi Neji! He's right over there," Sakura said, pointing to the now rigid cat in the kitchen.

"Thank you, Sakura-san." And he entered.

Then hell was violently let loose.

The cat hissed to its loudest while Sakura leaned against the wall, watching in amusement. Neji was fast, but it turns out the cat was winning for speed and agility. One too many times they got to close to her documents so she quickly gathered them and placed them on her book shelf. The cat seemed composed during the whole ordeal, but when Neji's hand brushed its fur in an attempt to grab it, the cat's claws shot out and nearly took off Neji's hand. Sakura stared in awe as Neji pulled back, he seemed to be debating on killing the animal. The cat, sensing Neji's hesitance, ran for Sakura. Sakura ignored the pest as it placed itself between her feet, not willing to move even if Sakura dared to kick it.

"Sakura-san, that cat should not be around children."

"Well, blame Ino, then. She's the one that stol-found it."

Neji glared one last time at the cat and walked out to find Ino. Sakura couldn't contain her laughter, the Neji Hyuga had been out smarted by a cat. She should've videoed it or something and sent it to Tenten.

She heard a low grumbling and she looked down at her feet. The cat was staring right back up at her, she laughed nervously and fell on her couch, letting out a long sigh.

The cat was still sitting there, unmoving and watching her. Sakura decided that trying to win a staring contest with this cat was a lost feat in itself. Then it moved to jump onto the arm rest beside her head. She didn't know what cats smelled like, but this one smelled…rather masculine. She couldn't exactly place the smell under a category like she could with Naruto. He wears that god awful shower gel then sprays two layers of after shave on. She should know since this is his second home, even without Sakura's consent.

"…Sai-junior."

The cats head snapped to her and she could've sworn his eyes narrowed. Guess he didn't like his new name.

"Naruto-junior."

Still narrowed.

"Kakashi-junior."

Even more narrowed.

"Wait, I got it!" Sakura exclaimed and sat up so her face was inches from the cat.

"Lee-junior. You're fur is black and Lee's hair is black, it's perfect!"

The cat stared at her smiling face. Then it did the unbelievable, it jumped her.

She yelped and fell off the couch, landing on her back. The fur ball was seated beside her head, its obsidian eyes so agonizingly intense on her. Cat's eyes weren't supposed to be like this, but nevertheless, he had pounced on her.

"I can't believe you-" Sakura cut off her rant. Rather than looking at the cat, right behind its head, on the bookshelf, was the picture of the old team 7.

"…Sasuke…junior…"

::XxX::

Well? Trade you Sasuke-hotness for a review? ^_^ Hope you like this story and its further progression.